will.i.am at the O2 arena, SE10

Share via

How appropriate that will.i.am’s album should be called #willpower. For if ever a star has made it to the top through sheer force of will it is the typographically challenged artist formerly known as William James Adams Jr. Although he has always been a reliable presence in Black Eyed Peas, will.i.am has never been noted for his prowess as a front-line rapper, let alone a singer. Yet with the Peas on hiatus, his profile has soared to improbably dizzy heights. “I never thought this day would happen,” he said, as he surveyed the view from the stage of the country’s